NY plea scheduled for Friday in $1.8B SAC deal

SAC Capital is scheduled to plead guilty in New York to insider trading charges to satisfy its $1.8 billion deal with the government.

Lawyers for the Stamford, Conn., hedge fund are set to enter the plea to wire fraud and multiple counts of securities fraud Friday in federal court in Manhattan. The government announced the deal Monday, saying it would satisfy civil and criminal charges brought against the company.

The government has said the company earned hundreds of millions of dollar illegally from 1999 to 2010 as its portfolio managers and analysts traded on inside information from at least 20 public companies.

Prosecutors say it is the biggest fine in history for insider trading offenses. The company is owned by billionaire Steven A. Cohen. He has not been criminally charged.